A: Howard’s answer: In answering your question, please be advised that I am licensed to practice law in Georgia and Washington, D.C. and that I am not licensed to practice law in Maryland. The technical answer is yes: prosecutors can independently have their investigators work a case and develop evidence not discovered by the police during their handling of the case. If this independent investigation reaches the conclusion that prosecution is warranted then the case can go forward.However, the probability of this matter coming before the desk of a prosecutor when the initial police report concluded that the case was not worthy of "being approved for prosecution and the case was closed" is very unlikely. As to your second question regarding the alleged excessive nature of the police conduct, I suggest you consult an attorney in Maryland with the expertise in litigation involving police misconduct.

A: Howard’s answer: In answering your question, please be advised that I practice in Georgia and I am not licensed to practice in the State of Virginia. The prosecutors do not have to have a cooperating codefendant/coconspirator as a witness in order to convict you of conspiracy. Although plea deals for reduced terms of imprisonment often are entered into with a member or members of a drug conspiracy in exchange for that person's testimony against other participants in the conspiracy, there is no requirement that a conviction for conspiracy be predicated upon testimony of one of the coconspirators. Furthermore, when it comes down to your alleged coconspirator testifying that you were not involved, invariably this does not happen as the coconspirator's interest in obtaining the best deal for himself will not come about if he exonerates you. Keep this in mind when people are now telling you how they supposedly will exonerate you, etc. In response to your second question of what constitutes a conspiracy to distribute cocaine, the existence of such a conspiracy would be evidence of an agreement by two or more persons to commit the unlawful act of distributing cocaine; and evidence that the charged coconspirator knew the unlawful purpose of the plan and willfully joined in it; and evidence that during the conspiracy, at least one of the conspirators knowingly engaged in at least one overt act with the purpose of carrying out or accomplishing some object of the conspiracy to distribute the cocaine. All three of these evidentiary matters must be proven beyond a reasonable doubt before a person could be convicted of that conspiracy to distribute cocaine.

A: Howard’s answer: Following your arrest for DUI, you will have what is logically called your "initial court appearance". Depending upon the jurisdiction where you are being prosecuted, the timing of this court appearance varies. For illustrative purposes as to what happens to you during this court proceeding and thereafter, let me discuss the procedure in Atlanta Municipal Court, which is the Court that handles the DUI cases made throughout the neighborhoods of Atlanta, including Buckhead, Midtown and Downtown. On the bottom of your DUI arrest citation, the trooper or police officer will write the date when you are to appear in Atlanta Municipal Court for your "initial appearance". At this proceeding, you will be called upon to tender a plea of guilty or a plea of not guilty. In response to your question of what happens after you have entered your plea of not guilty, your case will be rescheduled to provide you and your attorney (in my opinion everyone charged with a DUI should be represented by counsel throughout their DUI prosecution) with the opportunity to engage in discovery with the State. This will enable you to receive a copy of the police/trooper DUI Incident Report, a copy of your Intoxilyzer 5000 breath testing machine's analysis of the two breath samples you provided by blowing into the machine (or a copy of the breath testing machine slip indicating you supposedly refused to blow into the machine), access to receiving a copy of, or viewing, the law enforcement video recording of your encounter with the arresting law enforcement officer (assuming of course that the vehicle belonging to the officer or trooper was equipped with a video camera), and the sentencing recommendation of the prosecutor should you later plead guilty or are found guilty following a trial. The rescheduling of your case will also enable your attorney to decide whether he/she should file approriate motions on your behalf with the Court, including a motion to suppress the evidence obtained by the arresting officer/trooper, including the result of the chemical analysis of your breath, blood or urine, the results of the field sobriety tests, the observations of you made by the arresting officer/trooper, and any statements you may have made. After this process is completed, you and your attorney will then have had ample time for the two of you to decide what would be the best course of action for you to take: (1) Do you decide to keep your case in Atlanta Municipal Court. If so, can the DUI be reduced to a lesser charge. If not, do you plead guilty to the DUI, do you request a trial before the Judge (as a jury trial would only be available in Fulton County State Court), or do you "bind" your case over to Fulton County State Court for other alternatives, such as trying to persuade another prosecutor to reduce your DUI or to have either a trial before the Judge sitting without a jury or a jury trial. So, in summary, you will receive other court dates following the tendering of your plea of not guilty wherein you will have ample opportunity with your attorney to decide your best course of action.